Colchis Princess Medea figures in the myths of ancient Greece, as the companion of Argonaut Jason, who helped him to obtain the Golden Fleece. In Athens, she was revered as a goddess, able to fly through the heavens and revive the dead, but some chronological inconsistencies suggest that there could be two characters with this name in Greece. Is it so?
Medea - who is this?
According to the ancient Greek legends, the goddess Medea was the daughter of the oceanids of Idia and the king of Eta, she was the granddaughter of the solar deity Helios. It is considered part of the legends of the Hellenes of the heroic age that preceded the Trojan War. Together with Jason, Hercules, Perseus, Theseus and other characters, the female image is a border figure that is simultaneously in the old world of chthonic deities and shamans and the new Bronze Age of Greece. The image of the princess is described in such works as:
- the same tragedy of Euripides;
- the poems of "Argonavtika" by Apollonius of Rhodes and Gaius Valerius Flaccus;
- the play of Seneca;
- poem "Metamorphosis" by Ovid.
Medea - Myths of Ancient Greece
Who is Medea in mythology known by the stories about the adventures of the Argonauts. When the brave navigators led by Jason arrived in Colchis, the patron gods inspired the beautiful princess with a passionate love for the leader. Beloved Medea promised to marry her, and in return she helped overcome the trials her father had given her guests. In defiance of the will of the parents, the girl fled the house on the ship "Argo" and brutally dealt with her brother Apsirt to detain the chase. With the name of the daughter of Eta, there are such personalities as:
- a woman-argonaut of Atlantis (her goddess cured during wandering on the water);
- the ruler of Iolka, Pelius, whom she destroyed for the love of Jason;
- Zeus, who fell in love with her, but rejected;
- King Aegeus, the second husband of Medea;
- His son Theseus, who claimed the throne;
- Hercules, healed by the solar goddess;
- brother of Eta, Persus, who by force seized power, but was overthrown and killed by the heroine;
- Achilles - according to some myths he was also the queen's husband.
Medea and Jason
Often, when a sorceress from Colchis is remembered, the name of her husband Jason is mentioned, in whom Medea fell in love with her own will. After the girl helped the Argonaut to get the coveted Golden Fleece, lulling the guard of the dragon, she fled with the hero and swam the world, carrying with him good and justice. On the ship "Argo" they combined in marriage, gave birth to two sons, but later, in Corinth, the local ruler Creon wanted to extradite his daughter Glaucus for Jason. Argonaut was not against it. Then the enraged Medea killed the children from him, poisoned her rival and disappeared on the winged chariot.
Medea and Theseus
The wanderings of the solar goddess led her to Athens, where she became the wife of Agea and gave birth to the son of Honey. The family idyll was disturbed by the appearance of the heir - Theseus, who grew up in secrecy from everyone in Troesen. Even the tsar did not know that his son was in front of him, and his wife felt threatened and persuaded to poison the guest. The poison was poured into the goblet, but only Theseus lifted it to his lips, and Agei knocked the poison out of his hands, seeing his sword on the belt, which he inherited from the offspring.
Here there are some contradictions and inconsistencies. How could Argonaut Theseus meet his stepmother before the march behind the golden fleece? If the myth of Medea and Theseus is correct, then only if:
- Theseus did not swim on the "Argo";
- in the Greek legends there was another woman with the same name - she also tried to poison the prince.
Movies about Medea
There is a suggestion that Medea is an ancient Greek goddess, the heroine of fairy tales and the Corinthian epos, that is, the collective image of several characters. In the works of Greek and Roman writers, its features underwent changes, late authors, artists and filmmakers presented it in different ways. You can see the embodiment of the mythical heroine in such films as:
- "Medea" , 1988. The drama of Lars von Trier, representing the true tragedy of the mother-killer.
- "Jason and the Argonauts" , 1963. Adventure tape about the adventures of the seekers of the Golden Fleece.
- "Merry Chronicle of a Dangerous Journey" , 1986. Soviet musical adaptation of the myth of navigators to "Argo".
- "Medea" , 1969. Free exposition of ancient Greek legends from Paolo Pasolini.